DENVER (AP) - The Latest on Wildfires in Colorado (all times local):
6:20 p.m.
A southern Colorado wildfire has grown to 6 square miles and has destroyed some structures, but fire managers aren’t sure how many.
The fire is east of Fort Garland, about 160 miles (257 kilometers) south of Denver. Firefighters hadn’t established any containment lines as of Thursday.
Residents of about 350 homes were ordered to evacuate. Others have been told to prepare to leave, but officials were uncertain of the number.
The evacuated homes are in Forbes Park, a housing development started by multimillionaire Malcolm Forbes in the 1970s.
Roads manager Wade Colvin says residences range from large homes to cabins. He says about 300 people there when the fire was reported Wednesday.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency said Thursday the U.S. government would help pay the state’s cost for fighting the fire.
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5:45 p.m.
Residents of about 300 homes outside Rocky Mountain National Park have been ordered to evacuate because of a wildfire.
The Grand County Office of Emergency Management said Thursday the homes are on the west side of the park and are threatened by a small fire.
The fire has burned between 5 and 10 acres (2 and 4 hectares). Authorities haven’t said how it started.
Officials say the fire has not crossed into the national park or prompted any road closures, but one trail has been shut down.
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11:35 a.m.
Authorities say some structures have been burned by a wildfire in southern Colorado.
It’s not clear yet how many structures were burned or whether any were homes. The Costilla County Sheriff’s Office says it was still assessing the damage Thursday and will update evacuated residents in the afternoon.
The fire east of Fort Garland - about 160 miles (257 kilometers) south of Denver -has grown to over 5 square miles and is 0 percent contained since being reported Wednesday.
It has evacuated about 350 primary and vacation homes in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.
Hot, dry and windy weather has raised the fire danger across much of Colorado as well as Utah and parts of Arizona and Nevada.
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This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Malcolm Forbes.
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